
What Negative Interest Rates Mean For Landlords
Negative interest rates are on the Bank of England’s agenda as a tool for stimulating the economy. The BoE has already written to the banking industry asking if they are ready to implement the policy. Negative interest rates are when the official bank rate set by the...

Guild of Landlords Rent Digest – October 2020
Rents are still rising across the country despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the economy and jobs, according to the latest official data. The amount tenants pay has firmly stuck at a yearly increase of 1.4% to 1.5% for a year says the Office for National...

Government Turns Up Heat on Cold Homes
Ministers want to know what landlords think about lifting the minimum energy efficiency ratings for private rented homes. The plan is to raise the minimum Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating from E to C for new tenancies from 2025 and all other tenancies by...

Wealthy Tenants Threaten to Take Over Buy to Let
Well-off renters are running the buy to let market with an increasing supply of homes on the market and few competing tenants, according to new research. The private rental sector is struggling to revive following the Covid-19 lockdown that saw the number of homes let...

UK Property Prices Surge By 7%
Property prices soared by more than 7% in the past year as Britain’s housing bonanza shows no signs of stopping any time soon. The Halifax reports the average home sale was £249,870 in September as prices jumped by 7.3% - the biggest rise since 2016. Meanwhile, the...

New Light and Space PDRs for Landlords
New homes delivered through permitted development rights must meet minimum light and space standards, says Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick. The government wants to stop developers building homes that are too small and lack natural lighting. Tone of the main targets...

Green Light For Digital Property Energy Efficiency
The government has greenlighted two new digital services aimed at helping landlords and homeowners make the most of energy efficiency technology. Housing Minister Christopher Pincher launched a new service for tenants and movers that makes finding an energy...

Green Home Grant Not So Jolly for Landlords
The Green Home Grant may not be all that it seems for landlords as government cash for energy efficient improvements comes with some strings attached. Thousands of landlords can apply for grant...

Wales Reduces Anti-social Behaviour Notice Length
The Welsh Government have announced new legislation which is set to commence from tomorrow - 29 September 2020. The Coronavirus Act 2020 (Residential Tenancies: Protection from Eviction) (Wales) Regulations 2020 modifies the Coronavirus Act 2020. Firstly, it will...

Watchdog Tackles Leasehold Scandal
A government consumer watchdog wants to stop builders from ripping off leasehold home buyers. The Competitions and Markets Authority (CMA) wants four of Britain’s largest house builders to show they are not mis-selling leasehold homes and imposing unfair terms on...

Guild of Landlords Rent Digest – September 2020
Fixing a competitive rent can make all the difference to a property business bottom line. Get it right and renting a home out can be a breeze, but get it wrong and a landlord can be saddled with paying for the running costs without any money coming in. Although a...

Landlords Push for Repossessions Despite Evictions Ban
Landlords have filed thousands of repossession claims with the courts during the COVID-19 pandemic despite an eviction ban and please for forbearance from the government. The latest data from the Ministry of Justice shows the number of possession cases started by...

What The Latest Eviction Law Change Means For Landlords
Housing secretary Robert Jenrick has bolstered the rights of renters impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. New guidance has been published along with the updating of some previous guidance. Landlords must give six months’ notice to quit to renters in England – which...

Arrangements for When Possession Claims Start
Reactivation Notice Where a claim for possession was filed with the court before 3 August 2020 and was stayed under the Coronavirus rules, a “reactivation notice” is required to get the claim running again. See our article about this here. The government has published...

Six Months Notice Length for Wales Tenancies
Today (23 July 2020), Julie James MS, Minister for Housing and Local Government of the Welsh...

Possession Rules After Suspension Published
Update: the date of 23 August 2020 referred to below has been extended to 20 September 2020. Please see this article for details. Further update 16 September 2020: the government have published a non statutory reactivation notice which is now...

What Landlords Need to Know About No DSS Adverts
Housing charity Shelter has won a second case against a letting agent discriminating failing to consider tenants on housing benefits seeking to rent a buy to let home. The government has already signalled new laws are on the way to ban ‘No DSS’ adverts but some...

September Brings New Laws For Landlords
September sees some big changes in the law that impact landlords and tenants, including fast-track planning for home extensions and cash for improvements to make homes greener. This update wraps up all the changes including proposals to lend tenants in Scotland and...

Updated Legionella Risk Assessment Template
Our legionella risk assessment template for the iAuditor app has today been updated to version 2.0. This is free to download for all subscribers to the Guild or active subscribers to the legionella pack product. If your subscription has expired for the legionella pack...

Guild of Landlords Rent Digest – August 2020
Keeping an eye on rents to make sure your properties stay competitive but still make as much profit as possible is a key task for landlords. To help with the leg work of looking up all those statistics on different web sites, here’s a digest of some of the leading UK...